Chapter 161 Chapter 161 Baby Baby Baby
Vladimira came in the middle of the night and dropped him off like it was a quiet transaction no one was supposed to witness. A small car seat, a bag of his things, and a stack of paperwork thick enough to make it all feel real. Permanent. Final. We signed everything right there at the kitchen table while the apartment sat in complete silence around us. She told me her lawyer would send it in, that I should have the amended birth certificate within a week. The original only lists her. The father section is empty. The amended one will only have me.
Just me.
I was ready for him. Or at least I thought I was. I bought everything—crib, clothes, bottles, things I didn’t even know how to use yet but convinced myself I would figure out. I hired a live-in nanny because there was no other way to balance everything. I still have school to finish, work to maintain. It’s not ideal, not even close, but I keep telling myself it will settle into something manageable. Something right.
He doesn’t cry. Not really. He sleeps through the night like he has nowhere else to be, no urgency, no need to demand anything from the world. Every book I read feels useless now. They warned me about sleepless nights, constant crying, exhaustion. Instead, he eats, he sleeps, and he watches everything around him like he’s studying it. Like he’s deciding if it’s worth engaging with at all.
Such a serious baby.
Like his father.
His father—the asshole.
Ivan has been trying to call. I don’t answer. Somehow, he managed to get his hands on a cell phone, and for a while, he was texting me nonstop. Apologies. Explanations. Empty fucking words. I blocked him. Every letter he sent was returned unopened. I’m done. That was it.
God damn him.
For months now, I’ve been hiding my son from everyone. No one knows. Not even Tiana or Stanislav, and they live across the hallway from me. Stanislav is furious at Ivan, and rightfully so. He hurt me again. We’re blood, and Ivan… he’s Ivan. I don’t even know if they’re still friends. Business partners, yes—that doesn’t change. Miroslav runs Ivan’s operations now, which means I see him more than I’d like. I don’t enjoy it.
My cousin is opening a club in San Francisco next. They’ll move there temporarily, then Prague, Paris, maybe London after that. Their lives are always moving, always shifting. I’m going to miss Tiana.
Tonight, we’re all gathered at the Sugar Factory to celebrate my graduation. I have my master’s degree. In three weeks, I take over for Sky and run the gallery. Fewer hours, more pay, but also more responsibility—VIP clients, expectations, pressure. It’s a step forward. It should feel bigger than it does.
Gemma, Alek, Sergey, Mason, Tiana, and Stanislav are all seated around the table with me. Grant and Ryan are on their way, running late as usual. My nanny, Jennifer, is also on her way. I’ve checked her location more times than I want to admit.
Food starts arriving, filling the table with colors and smells that should make me hungry. Instead, I keep glancing toward the entrance.
Then I see her.
I stand as Jennifer approaches, pushing the pram carefully through the crowded space.
“Thank you, Jennifer,” I say, keeping my voice steady. “Take the rest of the day off. I’ll see you later.”
She nods, offering a small smile, and walks away without another word. She’s quiet—too quiet sometimes—but it makes for a peaceful apartment.
I reach down into the pram and lift my son into my arms.
Blond hair. Onyx eyes.
He looks exactly like his father.
And still, I’ve never felt anything but love for him.
I turn back to the table, cradling him carefully. He’s four months old now, heavier than he was, more aware, his gaze moving across faces like he’s trying to memorize them.
Silence falls.
Heavy. Thick. Consuming.
“This is my son,” I say finally. “Constantine.”
Ryan jumps up immediately, barely able to contain himself. “You have a baby?” he blurts, climbing onto his chair to get a better look. “He’s so little.”
He squints at me, clearly trying to solve a problem in his head. “But you weren’t fat.”
The table erupts into laughter, loud and uncontrollable. Grant pulls his son back down into his seat, shaking his head.
Arms wrap around me from behind, familiar and warm.
Vince.
“A baby, huh?” he says, kissing my cheek. “Sorry I’m late. Court ran long.”
I sit back down with Constantine still in my arms, and the questions start immediately. Too many. Too fast. Overlapping until I can barely separate them.
Tiana gently takes Constantine from me, cradling him like she’s done it a thousand times before.
“He looks like—”
I cut her off.
“Yes, he is his but we’re not going to say his father’s name out loud. Please.”
The shift is instant. The air tightens. Everyone understands without needing more explanation.
“I am his mother,” I continue, more firmly. “The one listed on his birth certificate. That’s all that matters.”
They all nod in unison.
“I can already see the stepdad applications lining up,” Grant jokes.
I let out a small, uncomfortable laugh. “No thanks. He’s all the man I need.”
I avoid looking at Sergey. He’s been persistent—too persistent. Always asking me out, always pushing for something more. I gave in once. Dinner. Just to see. But I told him clearly—I don’t want anything beyond friendship.
Mason doesn’t ask. He never does. He looks like he wants to, with him I would have to make the move. They all date, it's not like they are alone.
Grant… that situation is something else entirely. His brother is sterile, so Grant slept with his ex, and now she’s pregnant. She stayed with him for a few months. They could have gone the IVF route, but apparently, that wasn’t fun enough.
“I’ve been thinking,” I say, cutting through the noise. “Do you guys want to take a vacation? All of us. Together.”
Sergey smiles immediately. Alek nudges him, like this somehow means something more than it does.
“Where are you thinking?” someone asks.
“My villa.”
Stanislav nearly chokes on his drink. Tiana slaps his back as he coughs.
“You should keep that place a secret,” he says once he recovers, his tone serious now. “It’s your sanctuary. No one should know about it.”
I frown slightly. “Why?”
He looks at me, holding my gaze.
“Because when Ivan gets out,” he says quietly, “he will stop at nothing to find you.”
The words settle over me like a shadow I can’t shake.
“Finding me won't do him any good, I hate him. Truly hate him.” I say quietly, “I don't want him in my life. He doesn't know about the baby, he thinks he was aborted.”